California, Colorado, Connecticut and Delaware Redistricting Previews California State Legislative Lines Drawn By: Independent Commission (5 Democrats, 5 Republicans, 4 Independents)Congressional Districts: 52Congressional Lines Drawn By: Same CommissionState Supreme Court: 5-1-1 DemocraticDeadlines: Final maps due February 14, 2022 The California Citizens Redistricting Commission (CCRC) will likely once again produce fair congressional and state legislative maps. Any plans require the support of three Democrats, three Republicans and three Independents from the CCRC and if they can’t agree on lines drawing goes to special masters appointed by the (currently Democratic controlled) State Supreme Court. So it’ll be hard for either party to rig the lines to their advantage; Democratic-appointed special masters traditionally have drawn fair maps. The state legislature is solidly Democratic – they have supermajorities to pass almost anything. So the biggest questions are what will happen with the congressional delegation. Based on population shifts, the seat that it loses will likely come out of Los Angeles County, which is mostly Democratic. So while it seems like two Democratic incumbents may be forced to run against each other, Republican Rep. Mike Garcia could see his district go deeper into the Democratic San Fernando Valley, which would mean a net loss for Republicans coming out of reapportionment. Of course, none of this is a foregone conclusion. The CCRC is taking input on which communities of interest it should keep together and their schedule is here. Colorado State Legislative Lines Drawn By: Independent Commission (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans, 4 Independents)Congressional Districts: 8Congressional Lines Drawn By: Different Independent Commission (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans, 4 Independents)State Supreme Court: 7-0 DemocraticDeadlines: TBD based on Census delays Colorado will have independent commissions draw its lines for the first time. They’ve been charged with not only keeping communities of interest together, but maximizing the number of competitive seats. With only three seats determining the State Senate majority this means their legislative maps could make it a state to watch in 2022, though the state still has a pronounced Democratic lean. And on the congressional map, it’s possible to make four of the state’s eight seats competitive, creating two swingy but Democratic-leaning seats in the Denver suburbs and two swingy but Republican-leaning seats in the Western Slope and Pueblo-Colorado Springs. And the Commissions are soliciting input from Coloradoans; their input form is here and their in-person meeting schedule is here. Connecticut State Legislative Lines Drawn By: Likely a Political Commission (4 Democrats, 4 Republicans, 1 Independent)Congressional Districts: 5Congressional Lines Drawn By: Same CommissionState Supreme Court: 7-0 DemocraticDeadlines: Commission Maps due by November 30, 2021 Unless the state legislature can piece together a supermajority for new districts, Connecticut’s process will be run by a commission that last cycle sought minimal changes to existing maps. So if that happens again Nutmeggers can likely expect minimal changes to a state legislative map that has given Democrats solid majorities and a congressional map that has an all-Democratic delegation. Delaware State Legislative Lines Drawn By: State Legislature (Senate 14D-7R, House 26D-15R)Congressional Districts: 1Subject to Gubernatorial Veto: YesState Supreme Court: 3-2 DemocraticDeadlines: Filing deadline July 12, 2022 Delaware is a Democratic-leaning state so while redistricting likely won’t impact chamber control, keep an eye on whether Democrats will be able to retain the 60% majorities necessary to change tax laws in the state.